§2Οὗτος ὁ λόγος ἐπιεικής ἐστι καὶ δεῖταί τινος ἀγωνιστοῦ γενναίου πρὸς τὴν ἀπάντησιν, ὃς ἐπιδείξει ταῖς ἀρχαῖς τῶν νοσημάτων εἶδος ἴδιον ὑπάρχειν ὥσπερ τοῖς ζώοις διαπλαττομένοις, ἀνακείμενόν τε τούτῳ τὸν πρῶτον χρόνον ὅροις οἰκείοις περιγραφόμενον.
This argument is plausible and requires some noble champion to answer it, who will demonstrate that there exists a proper form for the beginnings of diseases, just as for animals in the process of formation, and that the first time allotted to this is circumscribed by its own boundaries.
ἐφ’ ὧν ἐστελ λόμην ἂν ἤδη διδάσκων ἃ γινώσκω, εἰ μή με κατά τινα δὴ τύχην ἐν τῷδε τοῦ λόγου γενόμενον ὑπῆλθεν ἡ Ἀρχιγένους διαίρεσις, ὃς εἰς τοὺς πρώτους τε καὶ μεγίστους καιροὺς διαιρῶν τὰ νοσήματα μετὰ τὴν ἀρχὴν εὐθέως ἀκμὴν τάττει, τὸν μεταξὺ καιρὸν καταλιπὼν τὴν ἀνάβασιν.
On which matters I would have already prepared myself to teach what I know, if by some chance, as I came to this point of the argument, the division of Archigenes had not occurred to me, who, dividing diseases into the first and greatest seasons, immediately places the prime after the beginning, leaving out the intervening season, the increase.
ὅπου γὰρ οὐκ εἶναι δοκεῖ καιρὸς ἴδιος τῆς ἀρχῆς ὅλης, ἀλλ’ ἀπὸ τῆς πρώτης εἰσβολῆς ἄχρι τῆς ἀκμῆς, τὸ μεταξὺ πᾶν ἐπίδοσις ᾖ, πῶς γε συγχωρήσειεν ἄν τις Ἀρχιγένει τὸ μὲν ὁμολογούμενον ὑπερβαίνοντι, τὸ δ’ ἀμφισβητούμενον ὡς ὁμολογούμενον ἑτοίμως τιθεμένῳ;
For where there does not seem to be a proper season of the whole beginning, but from the first onset until the prime, the whole interval is an increase, how indeed could anyone agree with Archigenes, who bypasses what is agreed upon, while readily assuming what is disputed as if it were agreed upon?
οὕτως μὲν οὖν φαίνεται προδιδοὺς ἐσχάτως τὸν λόγον, ἀγῶνος μεγάλου δεόμενον εἰς τὸ δεῖξαι τὴν ἀρχὴν τοῦ νοσήματος ἴδιον ἔχουσαν τύπον, οὐ σμικρότητι μόνον τῶν ἐφεξῆς αὐτῇ διαφέρουσαν· ἡμεῖς δὲ ἐπιχειρήσομεν ἤδη δεικνύειν διαλλάττουσαν ἰδέᾳ τινὶ τὴν ἀρχὴν τοῦ νοσήματος τῆς μετ’ αὐτὴν ἀναβάσεως.
In this way, then, he seems utterly to betray the argument, which requires a great contest to show that the beginning of the disease has a proper form, differing from what follows it not only in smallness; but we will now attempt to show that the beginning of the disease differs in a certain form from the increase after it.
ἡ δ’ ἀρχὴ τοῦ λόγου τὴν ἀνάμνησιν ἕξει ἐκ τῶν φαινομένων ἐναργῶς ἅπασιν ἡμῖν ἐπὶ πολλῶν νοσημάτων.
And the beginning of our discussion will hold the remembrance from what is clearly apparent to all of us in many diseases.
ὅθενπερ, οἶμαι, καὶ κινηθέντες ἰατροὶ σχεδὸν ἅπαντες οἱ πρὸ Ἀρχιγένους ἀρχήν τινα λέγουσιν ἑκάστου νοσήματος, οὐ τὴν πρώτην εἰσβολὴν ἐκείνην μόνην τὴν ἀπλατῆ, μῆκος δέ τι χρόνου καὶ πλάτος αὐτῇ προσγράφουσιν ἀξιόλογον ἔστιν ὅτε, καὶ μετὰ ταύτην τὴν ἀνάβασιν, εἶτ’ ἀκμὴν, ἐφ’ ᾗ δηλονότι τὴν καλουμένην παρακμήν.
From which, indeed, I believe, being moved, almost all doctors before Archigenes speak of a certain beginning of each disease, not attributing to it only that first onset which is without breadth, but assigning to it some considerable length and breadth of time at times, and after this the increase, then the prime, and after this, of course, the so-called decline.
ἐθεασάμεθα γοῦν ἐνίους ἐν τῷ πράττειν ὁτιοῦν τῶν κατὰ τὸν βίον ἀτρέμα φρίξαντας τὸ πρῶτον, εἶτ’ αὖθίς τε καὶ αὖθις ἀνωμαλίας τέ τινος ἰσχυροτέρας, καὶ φρίκης ἀξιολογωτέρας αἰσθανομένους, ὡς μήτε πράττειν μήθ’ ὑπομένειν ἃ πρότερον ἀμέμπτως ἔπραττον, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατακλιθῆναί τε καὶ δεῖσθαι σκεπασμάτων, καὶ τοῦτο παθόντας ἐνίους μὲν ὥραις τρισὶν, ἐνίους δὲ ἐλάττοσιν, ἢ πλείοσιν· ἐντεῦθεν δ’ ἄρξασθαι θερμασίας ἀηδοῦς τε καὶ παρὰ φύσιν αἰσθάνεσθαι ταύτης κατ’ ὀλίγον αὐξανομένης.
We have at any rate observed some who, while doing anything in life, at first shivered slightly, then felt again and again some stronger irregularity and more considerable shivering, so that they could neither do nor endure what they previously did blamelessly, but even lay down and needed covers; and some experienced this for three hours, others for less or more; and from there began to feel an unpleasant and unnatural heat, which increased little by little.
ἐν αὐτοῖς γὰρ τούτοις ἐναργῶς ὁρᾶται διαφέρουσα κατ’ ἰδέαν ἐξαίρετον ἡ ἀρχὴ τοῦ παροξυσμοῦ τῆς ἐπιδόσεως.
For in these very things, the beginning of the paroxysm is clearly seen to differ in a special form from the increase.
εὔδηλον δὲ ὅτι τὴν αὔξησιν ἐπίδοσιν ὀνομάζουσιν ἔνιοι, καθάπερ ἄλλοι τινὲς ἀνάβασιν· ἡμεῖς δ’ ἅπασι τοῖς ὀνόμασιν, ὡς ἂν ἐπέλθῃ, χρησόμεθα· δηλοῖ γὰρ ἓν πρᾶγμα πάντα.
It is clear that some call the growth "increase," just as others call it "ascent"; but we shall use all the names as they occur, for they all indicate one thing.
τοῦτο οὖν τὸ πρᾶγμα, ὃ τρισὶν ὀνόμασι προσαγορεύεται, ἵσταταί ποτε καὶ παύεται τῆς αὐξήσεως, καὶ φαίνεται διαμένον ἶσον ἑαυτῷ κατά τινα χρόνον, ἤτοι μακρότερον, ἢ βραχύτερον· εἶτ’ ἐντεῦθεν ἔλαττον ἑαυτοῦ γινόμενον, ἤτοι διὰ ταχέων, ἢ χρόνῳ πλείονι· καὶ ποτὲ μὲν εἰς ἀπυρεξίαν ἡ τοῦ πυρέξαντος οὕτως φαίνεται ἐπανερχομένη διάθεσις, ἔστι δ’ ὅτε ὑπὸ τῆς εἰσβολῆς δευτέρου παροξυσμοῦ καταλαμβανομένη τὴν αὐτὴν ἰδέαν ἔχοντος τῇ προειρημένῃ.
This thing, therefore, which is addressed by three names, at some point stands still and ceases from growth, and appears to remain equal to itself for some time, either longer or shorter; then from there becoming less than itself, either quickly or in more time; and sometimes the condition of the one who fevered thus appears to return to apyrexia, but at other times it is overtaken by the onset of a second paroxysm having the same form as the aforementioned.
καὶ πάντως γ’ ἔστιν ὅτε τὰ προειρημένα δεύτερον αὖθις ἐπιγίγνεται τῷ νοσοῦντι, πολλάκις δ’ ἔστιν ὅτε καὶ τρίτον, καὶ τέταρτον, καὶ πέμπτον δὲ, περιερχομένης τῆς νόσου κατά τινα κύκλον ἐκ τῶν αὐτῶν ἐπὶ τὰ αὐτὰ διὰ τῆς αὐτῆς τάξεως.
And certainly sometimes the aforementioned things happen again a second time to the sick person, and often also a third, a fourth, and even a fifth time, the disease revolving in a certain circle from the same things to the same things through the same order.
ὀνομάζουσι δὲ τὸν τοιοῦτον κύκλον ἕκαστοι οἱ ἰατροὶ περίοδον. ἔνιοι μὲν οὖν αὐτῶν ἐν τέτταρσι καὶ εἴκοσιν ὥραις περιγράφονται, καὶ καλοῦσιν αὐτὰς ἀμφημερινάς· ἔνιαι δὲ ἐν ὀκτὼ καὶ τετταράκοντα, τουτέστιν ἐν δυσὶν ἡμέραις καὶ νυξὶν, ἃς ὀνομάζουσι τριταίων πυρετῶν περιόδους· ἑτέρας δέ τινας ἑβδομήκοντα καὶ δυοῖν ὡρῶν περιγράφει χρόνος, ὧν τοὺς μὲν πυρετοὺς αὐτοὺς ὀνομάζουσι τεταρταίους, τὸν κύκλον δ’ ὅλον, ὃς ἐπανέρχεται εἰς τὴν μίαν ἀρχὴν, τεταρταίαν περίοδον· οὕτω δὲ καὶ τριταίαν περίοδον ἅμα τριταίῳ πυρετῷ, καὶ τὴν ἀμφημερινὴν ἑκάστης ἡμέρας ἐπανακυκλοῦσαν ἅμα τοῖς ἀμφημερινοῖς πυρετοῖς· ἀλλ’ αἵ γε περίοδοι πᾶσαι ποτὲ μὲν εἰς ἀπυρεξίαν ἀφικνοῦνται, καθάπερ ἐν τοῖς προειρημένοις πυρετοῖς, ἀμφημερινῷ καὶ τριταίῳ καὶ τεταρταίῳ· ποτὲ δὲ εἰς παρακμὴν μόνον, ἤτοι πλησίον ἀπυρεξίας ἥκουσαν, ἢ καὶ ποῤῥωτέρω.
And all doctors call such a circle a "period." Some of them are circumscribed in twenty-four hours, and they call them quotidian; others in forty-eight, that is, in two days and nights, which they call periods of tertian fevers; and a certain other is circumscribed by a time of seventy-two hours, of which they call the fevers themselves quartan, and the whole circle, which returns to the one beginning, a quartan period; so also a tertian period along with a tertian fever, and the quotidian recurring every day along with the quotidian fevers; but all the periods sometimes arrive at apyrexia, just as in the aforementioned fevers, quotidian, tertian, and quartan; but sometimes only at a decline, either coming near to apyrexia, or even further.